In the blink of an eye, the Xu Tide had already become a matter of several hours ago.
“Remember to come! You must come!” Ming Ling earnestly reminded Jiang Ke’er.
Jiang Ke’er didn’t know why Ming Ling was so insistent about having her come to Sandao Village by tomorrow evening, but she agreed anyway.
She had promised the villagers of Sandao Village to attend the Yingling Festival there tomorrow. After that, all the Yao hurriedly set off on their return journey without delay.
Clearly, the three villages were experienced in dealing with Xubeast incidents like this. With prior precautions, there was barely any loss of people or supplies.
Most of the cultivators from Erdao Village and Yidao Village, however, perished in battle.
Jiang Ke’er couldn’t understand—when the elderly, women, and children of Sandao Village had already taken shelter in the refuge, why would they insist on defending Yidao and Erdao Villages to the death instead of hiding together?
It must be that there was some secret hidden within Yidao and Erdao Villages.
Along the way, taking advantage of the night not yet having fallen, the Yao hurried back to the Small Town where they’d set out.
When they returned to the Yan Family, everyone still felt a lingering sense of fear after surviving the calamity.
“I’m starving!” Jie Shui shouted. “You all bragged the whole way about Qing Yi Miss’s cooking, but is it really that amazing? Aren’t you exaggerating a bit?”
After all the running and fighting, the Revival Society Yao were already famished.
Jie Shui kept suggesting they all go out to a restaurant for a proper meal, but everyone insisted on waiting to eat Jiang Ke’er’s cooking.
He didn’t get it… No matter how good someone’s cooking is, could it really be better than a master chef at a big restaurant?
Changsun Qingyue had felt a little sorry for Jiang Ke’er at first.
After all, she’d narrowly escaped death today and had been through quite a fright.
To make her cook dinner now seemed a bit much… But unexpectedly, Jiang Ke’er insisted on cooking herself, so everyone’s guilt faded, replaced by anticipation for the evening meal.
After all, they’d fought in the Xu Tide for so long, and were all spattered with Xubeast blood. So Jiang Ke’er first went to bathe, scrubbing herself clean until her skin was soft and fair.
Stepping out of the bathroom, Jiang Ke’er felt refreshed and clear-headed.
She headed straight for the kitchen to get started—unaware that Qiao Xiaoxian had slipped into the bathroom after her, also washing herself thoroughly, looking as if she was preparing for something big.
Hmm, now, how to get Qiao Xiaoxian to obediently eat food containing Sleepy Black Tea—this was the question.
To avoid accidentally harming anyone else, while still targeting Qiao Xiaoxian precisely, she needed to plan the menu carefully tonight.
Plan, begin!
She’d observed before that Qiao Xiaoxian didn’t like greasy or overly fancy food, and was quite disciplined.
A bowl of light, clear Vegetable Soup would actually be much more likely to lure her in.
So, then…
Once again, Jiang Ke’er’s speed in preparing dishes left the Yan Family servants dumbfounded. In just a few minutes, the table was filled with courses, each arranged in order.
Jiang Ke’er personally carried each dish to the table.
She chose to serve the meal as she had in the morning—one portion for each diner.
This not only avoided any scramble for food but also made it easier to target Qiao Xiaoxian precisely.
Soon enough, Qiao Xiaoxian, her hair tied up and her whole body fragrant and rosy from her bath, stepped out of the bathroom.
But when she saw the dinner spread tonight, she paused, frowning deeply.
This was just too greasy.
In front of every seat was a huge Roast Pork Knuckle—crispy on the outside and tender inside, the skin crackling and delicious, the aroma of spices filling the courtyard, making everyone’s mouth water—the taste was obviously not a problem, and it suited everyone’s palate. But Qiao Xiaoxian just couldn’t get used to it.
What was even more infuriating was that Jiang Ke’er had clearly considered the grease factor.
Next to everyone else’s pork knuckle, there was a refreshing Vegetable Soup and a Lemon Slice to cut the richness.
Only Qiao Xiaoxian had none.
And the Vegetable Soup and Lemon Slice given to others were exactly single servings.
If she wanted to ask for some from someone else, it would be hard to open her mouth.
It was obvious she was being singled out.
Qiao Xiaoxian narrowed her eyes but still sat down in her seat.
Her seat was right beside Jiang Ke’er.
Jiang Ke’er raised her eyebrows at her in challenge, made a silly face, and then deliberately tucked into her food with relish right in front of Qiao Xiaoxian, finally sighing with a look of utter bliss, “So satisfying!”
That display really whetted everyone’s appetite, and even Qiao Xiaoxian couldn’t help but feel hungry.
Qiao Xiaoxian looked around and saw Jie Shui still busy snapping photos to post on Xiushiquan, not having started eating yet, so she said, “Let’s switch. This portion is too big, I can’t finish it.”
As she spoke, Qiao Xiaoxian didn’t wait for Jie Shui to object, and swapped her own huge, fatty, greasy Roast Pork Knuckle for Jie Shui’s.
Ha! Just as expected!
Jiang Ke’er sneered inwardly—this Qiao Xiaoxian was too cunning. To guard against being poisoned, she’d swap food with others. Fortunately, Jiang Ke’er had predicted this and hadn’t put anything in the pork knuckle.
But even after swapping the knuckle, Qiao Xiaoxian still frowned, unable to bring herself to eat… She’d never eaten anything so greasy in her life. At a glance, it was all fat—she just couldn’t stomach it.
Now’s the time!
Jiang Ke’er kept her expression calm, gently picked up her own bowl of Vegetable Soup, and flaunted it in front of Qiao Xiaoxian, giving her a provocative look, “No soup for you. I hope the grease chokes you. What can you do to me?”
Qiao Xiaoxian, naturally, couldn’t tolerate Jiang Ke’er’s relentless provocation. She flicked her fingertip, tapping Jiang Ke’er’s wrist.
With a twist, the bowl of Vegetable Soup in Jiang Ke’er’s hand landed steadily in Qiao Xiaoxian’s.
“Hey! What are you doing!” Jiang Ke’er cried out in feigned anger, hurriedly reaching out to snatch it back, “Give it back!”
Qiao Xiaoxian’s lips curled upward. She stood, raised the bowl to her mouth, and tipped her head back so that Jiang Ke’er couldn’t reach it no matter how she tried.
Out of Jiang Ke’er’s sight, a faint Devil Light flickered in Qiao Xiaoxian’s eyes, illuminating the soup in the bowl.
So that’s how it is.
Understanding dawned on her. She suddenly tilted her head back, as if she’d drained the entire bowl in one go.
“Bastard! Give it back! Don’t drink it!” Jiang Ke’er kept shouting, looking furious and unwilling, but the smile at the corner of her lips grew more and more triumphant.
“Give it back! Bastard! Don’t steal it!” Jiang Ke’er could barely contain her glee.
When Qiao Xiaoxian lowered her head, Jiang Ke’er met her teasing gaze head-on.
Seeing that look, Jiang Ke’er froze, inwardly crying out in alarm, and dashed off at once.
“Alright, I’ll give it all back to you.”
Qiao Xiaoxian grabbed Jiang Ke’er by the back of the neck like lightning, pulling her into her arms.
“Wuwu, let me go, glug glug glug—”
Jiang Ke’er was held tight, unable to break free, while Qiao Xiaoxian pried her mouth open and used Spiritual Powet to force the entire bowl of soup down her throat.
In fact, Qiao Xiaoxian hadn’t drunk any at all—she’d kept the Vegetable Soup pressed in the bowl with her Spiritual Powet, only pretending to drink it, her lips never touching a drop.
“Since you like it, you can have it all.”
The Devil Light in Qiao Xiaoxian’s pupils grew stronger and stronger. Jiang Ke’er knew exactly what that meant.
Despair gripped her. Qiao Xiaoxian’s face grew blurry in her vision, her cultivation rapidly freezing, and in her ears echoed the demon’s faint, chilling whisper.
“Drink more.”